Weekly Roundup — July 26th, 2021
Dear Lympo community,
I bet we were all a bit (pleasantly) surprised to wake up to such a crazy crypto market uptrend on a Monday morning. Let’s hope this is only the start of a beautiful upward trajectory. But that’s — of course — for the market to decide, so all we can do is sit tight and get ready for lots of upcoming news and developments in the Lympo ecosystem! First, let’s look back at what happened last week in the worlds of Lympo and Animoca Brands.
Last week’s recap
Lympo represented at 56th True Global Ventures Conference
On the 21st of July (or the 22nd, depending on your time zone), True Global Ventures hosted their 56th True Global Ventures Conference, co-organized by Animoca Brands.
True Global Ventures is stringing together Blockchain trends and what Financial Institutions in the future might look like while bringing the cream of the crop from the industry together. The ongoing hype around Blockchain is aggressively challenged and the attendants dig into real user cases of Blockchain applications to solve real problems and define what should go into production or Blockchain technology.
Both Yat Siu, Animoca Brands’ Founder and Chairman, and Vilius Jastremskas, Lympo’s Chief Partnership Officer, have shared their take on where the world of NFTs is headed during the section titled “NFTs: Just a Hype or Here to Stay?”. They were joined by Sebastien Borget, Co-founder and COO of The Sandbox, and Mike McCready, CEO and Co-founder of MusicXray.
Once we get our hands on the recording, we’ll definitely share it with you.
Launchpad Luna to boost NFT startups
Animoca Brands continues to spread its tentacles into the NFT space, as they have partnered with global venture accelerator Brinc to launch Launchpad Luna. Launchpad Luna is a virtual, accelerator program to identify, mentor, and invest in promising blockchain and NFT startups worldwide.
High-potential early-stage projects and startups that are accepted into the acceleration program will receive training, a launchpad, and a monetary investment of up to USD$500,000 (or equivalent) in exchange for equity and tokens. Lympo is looking forward to welcoming amazing new projects to the Animoca Brands ecosystem to help bring our vision to life. Find out more here.
Behind-the-scenes at an NFT production shoot
Have you noticed some of the behind-the-scenes action on Lympo’s Instagram stories yesterday? Our Chief Partnership Officer Vilius Jastremskas spent his Sunday on the basketball court to film with an athlete that hasn’t been announced yet. Sounds like we’ll find out more soon! 😉 See for yourself!
And as you can see based on the gigantic green screen behind the athlete, the film production crew is taking these shoots very seriously to deliver the best possible result! 💪
Behind the scenes
One of Lympo’s earliest and biggest believers has been critical to the team’s success ever since Lympo saw the light of day in 2017. Through thick and thin, he has never doubted that Lympo would become a major player in the blockchain space. And while Lympo pivoted to the NFT vertical within the blockchain industry, he’s even more proud to be on Lympo’s side. So proud that he even has his own set of Lympo NFTs! That’s right, we’re talking about Antanas Guoga — a.k.a. Tony G — , and today we’ll get to know him a little better.
Who is Antanas Guoga, a.k.a. Tony G?
I left Lithuania as a child and grew up predominantly in Australia. My first job was cleaning windscreens on cars, but then I found poker and got a job at Citibank, and things moved on from there. I started playing poker professionally and founded PokerNews.com which became one of the biggest affiliates and the number one portal for poker news worldwide. It was through the poker world that I started to get an insight into the crypto space. I’ve also been a Member of the European Parliament, where I’ve spoken about the blockchain resolution. So you could say I’m a huge blockchain advocate!
How were you involved in the early days at Lympo, and what is your role now with regard to Lympo?
I was involved right at the beginning and I’m currently an advisor. I have always had a huge interest in blockchain, sports, and fitness and I funded the Lithuanian basketball team in the 2012 Olympics. I also helped found the Blockchain Centre in Vilnius, Lithuania in 2018.
In the current Olympics in Tokyo, I have supported Lithuania’s amazing rowers and have my fingers firmly crossed that they do well. The recent news that a subsidiary of Animoca did a deal with the International Olympic Committee is a great and powerful move. Lympo has launched my own Tony G NFTs, which is very exciting to me. I’m a Lympo athlete as well as an advisor!
As an entrepreneur, investor, poker star, and philanthropist, what does your day-to-day look like?
I am an early riser and probably don’t sleep enough, but if you want to achieve anything in life you always have to work hard for it. Success in business doesn’t just come to you. I have made many mistakes but without those mistakes, there is a lot I wouldn’t have learned. Currently, I spend most of my time in Dubai and Lithuania and I work with people on a variety of projects around the world.
You’ve been — and still are — one of the earliest believers in Lympo, what makes you so excited about it?
I definitely was one of the earliest believers in Lympo, as Lympo has always been about sports and health. Now that Lympo is focusing entirely on bringing sports and health to the gaming vertical through the use of NFTs, I’m incredibly excited to see the impact it will have.
You’re also involved (e.g. as an investor) in many other companies within the Animoca Brands universe, what are the biggest strengths of this ecosystem to you and how do you see these different solutions come together?
I think Animoca Brands’ Chairman Yat Siu is a genius and one of the foremost industry experts in the world. I’m really happy Lympo is on board with them and their ecosystem. In recent times, Animoca has received plenty of investments from really influential sources and I believe strongly that they can help take Lympo to a new level. I got involved in the early days with Animoca’s REVV token and F1 Delta Time. In 2020, I introduced my own Tony G Super Fast team — I can now say I have my own F1 team! In March this year the team purchased the Apex Australian car for $REVV 1,221,221 $REVV 1,221,221 which was approximately AUD$430,000 (circa US$309,000) at the time.
What are you most proud of when it comes to your contribution to Lympo?
I’m proud of the team that runs the business and their heart and commitment to the cause. And I must admit, I’m also very proud to have my own NFT’s!
Which of your own NFTs is your personal favorite?
My personal favorite has to be the legendary On Your Bike card! I’m also looking forward to the Auctions that Lympo has planned very soon 😉
What are you looking forward to that your own NFTs will be able to do in terms of utility?
I believe that having my NFTs as part of the broader Animoca Brands ecosystem just opens up a lot more doors. In terms of utility, the sky is really the limit! What I’m particularly looking forward to is what the team is doing with regard to Lympo’s NFTs and Binance, I can’t wait to see the results of that!
If you could dream about a particular athlete whose NFT you could mint on the Lympo platform, who would it be?
That has to be Phil Hellmuth, my poker nemesis!
What do you do when you’re not thinking about work?
I like to keep fit and go on regular walks — it helps clear the head. Even though I believe physical activity is important, I like a party every once in a while as well. Oh, and I really love basketball too. Back in the early days of Lympo, the company already achieved great things by doing a deal with the Dallas Mavericks NBA team. It was great to shoot hoops with their owner Mark Cuban and even better to out-perform him!
Looking ahead
Everyone is eager to see a stream of announcements flooding our community channels, but great products and partnerships simply need time. However, when we said that Q3 will be a very exciting quarter, we weren’t lying. You better get ready. 🔥
Want to know more?
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